Conservation and Environmental Management in Madagascar

Madagascar is one of the most biologically diverse places on the planet, the result of 160 million years of isolation from the African mainland. More than 80% of its species are not found anywhere else on Earth. However, this highly diverse flora and fauna is threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation and the island has been classified one of the world’s highest conservation priorities.
Drawing on insights from geography, anthropology, sustainable development, political science and ecology, this book provides a comprehensive assessment of the status of conservation and environmental management in Madagascar. It describes how conservation organisations have been experimenting with new forms of protected areas, community-based resource management, ecotourism, and payments for ecosystem services. But the country must also deal with pressing human needs. The problems of poverty, development, environmental justice, natural resource use and biodiversity conservation are shown to be interlinked in complex ways. Authors address key questions, such as who are the winners and losers in attempts to conserve biodiversity? And what are the implications of new forms of conservation for rural livelihoods and environmental justice?

Content:

1. Introduction: Conservation at the Crossroads: Biological Diversity, Environmental Change and Natural Resource Use in Madagascar Ivan R. Scales Part 1: Madagascar’s Biological Diversity: From Deep Time to the Arrival of Humans
2. Explaining Madagascar’s Biodiversity Jörg U. Ganzhorn, Lucienne Wilmé and Jean-Luc Mercier
3. Early Human Settlers and their Impact on Madagascar’s Landscapes Robert E. Dewar Part 2: Paradise Lost? The Myths, Narratives and Received Wisdoms at the Heart of Conservation Research and Policy
4. Deforestation in Madagascar: Debates over the Island’s Forest Cover and Challenges of Measuring Forest Change William J. McConnell and Christian A. Kull
5. The Drivers of Deforestation and the Complexity of Land Use in Madagascar Ivan R. Scales Part 3: The Politics of Biodiversity Conservation and Environmental Management
6. A Brief History of the State and the Politics of Natural Resource use in Madagascar Ivan R. Scales
7. The Roots, Persistence, and Character of Madagascar’s Conservation Boom Christian A. Kull
8. The Transfer of Natural Resource Management Rights to Local Communities Jacques Pollini, Neal Hockley, Frank Muttenzer and Bruno Ramamonjisoa
9. Conservation Politics in Madagascar: The Expansion of Protected Areas Catherine Corson
10. The Durban Vision in practice: Experiences in the Participatory Governance of Madagascar’s New Protected Areas Malika Virah-Sawmy, Charlie J. Gardner and Nanie A. Ratsifandrihamanana Part 4: Making Conservation Pay? Incentive-Based Conservation, the Commodification of Madagascar’s nature and Conflicting Views of Landscape and Nature
11. Tourism, Conservation and Development in Madagascar: Moving Beyond Panaceas? Ivan R. Scales
12. Bioprospecting a Biodiversity Hotspot: The Political Economy of Natural Products Drug Discovery for Conservation Goals in Madagascar Benjamin D. Neimark and Laura M. Tilghman
13. Incentivising Forest Conservation: Payments for Environmental Services and Reducing Carbon Emissions from Deforestation Laura Brimont and Cécile Bidaud
14. Contrasting Visions of Nature and Landscapes Jeffrey C. Kaufmann
15. Conclusion: The Future of Biodiversity Conservation and Environmental Management in Madagascar: Lessons from the Past and Challenges Ahead Ivan R. Scales

Reviews:"The relations between society and nature in Madagascar are complex and often misunderstood. This book offers new light on this subject by exploring the social, political and economic dimensions of conservation and development challenges." – W.M. Adams, Moran Professor of Conservation and Development, University of Cambridge, UK